Assembling Hope
by ConnietheCat
Summary: We know the Warriors of Hope survived after Another Episode, but how? Masaru finds himself inside a set of mysterious tunnels after running from the Monokuma Kids' punishment. From there, he goes on a quest to rescue the other Warriors, just as the Leader should. Part One of the series "Collection of Hope"


**Welcome and thank you for clicking this! This is the first of a series of Warriors of Hope stories called, well,** _ **The Collection of Hope!**_ **I love those kids and feel the need to write for them. There will be headcanons in the collection; there will be silliness...even fourth wall breaking?**

 **This is a long oneshot. I was debating splitting it up, but I decided not to as I sort of feel it's a little better reading it in one go. Lol that'll cost me favorites, but not as much as an incomplete story!**

 **Also: I very much had fun with the thingy I used to break apart sections….you'll see…**

 _ **Assembling Hope**_

Masaru gripped his heavily bruised arm, panting as the last of the explosion from his robot fell from the top of the arena. In this moment, it was as if he had experienced a strange calmness. The robot was broken, no more fighting… Suddenly, metallic clangs filled the space behind him. Looking to his side, he saw the red eye on each and every one of the Monokuma kids light up. Pure fear overtook his mind, and he was enveloped by hundreds of hands.

Masaru tried to scream, but couldn't as his army of children dragged him away to his doom. He was the leader, their leader, and yet he had lost. He was dragged and tugged more and more as he was completely surrounded. They had torn off his headphones and threw them out of the fray as the dragged him away.

His already bruised and bandaged legs were scraped across the dirty ground as the legion continued their powerful and painful grabs. Masaru closed his eyes and was about to accept his fate. He was done for, he had failed as leader, and he had felt true fear.

Wait. He was the _leader_. Masaru Daimon, the _Hero_ of the Warriors of Hope. He had a duty to fulfill to his team members. He was out of sight of the main area, so the Demons couldn't see him. Summoning as much strength as he could, he broke free of the Monokuma Kids, ignoring the pain of his beaten arm. They glared at him with the empty eyes of their controlling helmets. Taking his chance, Masaru ran as fast as he could muster in the moment.

He ran until he found where he was looking for: the emergency tunnels. They were supposed to be used for unknown circumstances, but they were never really used and tangled under the various arenas. It was almost the perfect plan. Masaru took a breather and crouched down in the dark passageway, panting from exhaustion.

Looking over at his arms and legs, he saw that new bruises caused by the Kids were already turning purple. Putting his hands behind his head and his head in between his knees, he cried, tired. He was all alone in this tunnel he didn't know well, had no food or water, and was nearly killed. He didn't want to admit or think about it, But Masaru was deeply afraid. Paranoid. What if the Monokuma Kids came down here and found him?

Looking around in the darkness, he thought out loud. "What are the other Warriors doing without me?" he wondered, his voice trembling, "Nagisa had to have taken over for me…" Did they know he was gone, that he had failed?

The despair was almost too much for him. He had great friends in the Warriors of Hope, even Jataro. Nagisa as well, even if he wouldn't admit it. Masaru had no other option than to curl up and sleep.

 **-BREAK!-**

Masaru woke up after his sleep, though he had no idea what time it was when he did. He stomach rumbled, but he had to press onwards. He legs were a little wobbly getting up, but he needed to trek on. He had to find the next arena. Gritting his teeth, he set off.

Taking steps into the darkness, he tried to see each twist and turn of the tunnels, but to his surprise, there wasn't as many as he had thought. Taking the straight path with a few lefts was his plan. Each hall looked the same, and each made him more and more frustrated.

"Can't anything go as I entend...inted- _meant_?!" he fumbled, kicking at the ground as he did. In that moment, he heard an extremely loud commotion from above. The faint sound of the Demon's blaster rang in the tunnels. With a start, Masaru realized he was near. _But, who would be fighting?_ He thought, and gulped, _who would_ lose?

He pushed on, battling hunger as he found what he was looking for, the opening to the ground of the arena. As soon as the Monokuma Kids brought his unlucky team member near, he would swoop in like a real hero and save them. Peeking just as much of his head out as he needed to, hit tried to see above the crowd of Kids.

Almost immediately afterwards, the huge explosion of a robot being defeated filled his ears. He winced himself as the children's eyes started glowing and their pursuit began. More and more Kids crowded until he truly couldn't get a glimpse of who was the defeated member. With shock, he realized the group was getting closer and closer to doom, and he needed to step in, fast.

Getting up and sneaking around, Masaru tried but failed to see who was the defeated. He whispered as loud as he could, _"Get away from them! Come to me!"_ Masaru clenched his fists and hoped that they heard him and the Monokuma Kids did not.

As if on cue, there was a disturbance in the ranks, and a figure just shorter than Masaru crawled out. Could it be? With that light brown hair and pretty light lilac eyes? _Jataro?_ Unable to take the suspense, Masaru rushed forward and grabbed the Priest by his over-sized sweater sleeve. A startled grunt was the only noise he made as he was pulled into the dark tunnel.

Ragged breathing was the only noise in the tunnel as the two boys sat down. Masaru realized he had never really seen Jataro without that ugly mask of his, declaring himself to ugly for anyone to see. The best option was the mural of the group in their fantasy outfits Jataro had made.

It wasn't as if Masaru had truly believed Jataro to be so eye-meltingly ugly like he said, but it was still surprising to see him look so… _pretty_. Masaru's eyes widen and he shook his head, clearing his thoughts. _N-now is not the time!_ He was about to address the subject at hand, however he noticed Jataro was staring in shock at Masaru, like he was seeing a ghost.

"H-how are you alive?" he asked, and if there was any doubt before it was him, his nasally voice cleared it. "We thought you were dead, torn apart from the insides out by the Monokuma Kids bringing you to the adults! We even held a funeral…"

Masaru felt a pang in his heart at this. "Y-you guys did that for me?" he whispered. It was incredibly touching that his fellow Warriors had honored him.

Jataro looked down sheepishly. "It was really just me and Nagisa…I don't think Kotoko or Monaca cared much… But the Monokuma Kids said you had been captured by adults! That you were never to return!"

Masaru's eyes widened. Captured? They must have needed an excuse. Not even they could do their jobs correctly! But what would have happened if they _had…_

But Monaca and Kotoko didn't care that their leader was gone? Masaru's hope fell a little at that, but he went on about their predicament now. He explained the tunnels and how he escaped, and how he needed to save the rest of the Warriors. Jataro agreed to help, though it was more of a duty. However, this discussion made Masaru forget one detail.

"Um, Masaru," Jataro began, "how are we going to eat?"

Dang it.

Masaru blushed, angry for him forgetting that detail. He hadn't eaten for however long he's been down here. "I-I guess we'll have to get out before we suckumb to hunger!" He said proudly, puffing out his chest as he stood up.

"It's 'succumb,' not 'suckumb,'" Jataro mumbled, almost unlike him. Had he been hanging out with Nagisa? He covered he face with his arms. "What if we starve? Our meatless bones with be left down here, never to be seen by anyone again! What's left of us will be consumed by raaats!" He moaned.

Masaru puffed out his cheeks. "Nagisa always says we need water more than food, so we need to find that first." Pulling Jataro's arms away from his face, he led the two through the tunnels, trying to find water.

It seemed like forever until Masaru found a tunnel exit that was near some water. "There!" Masaru announced proudly. "If you can use any, uh, vials or something you have, Jataro, we can gather water!" The red-haired Hero beamed.

Jataro frowned a bit, probably because of the desperate situation they were in. "Please let go of my sleeve… You might get infected from my horribleness!" He said, and Masaru quickly pulled away. He hadn't even realized he still held on since the beginning. Thankfully, Jataro did have a few vials and filled them up. It was even luckier they weren't dirty or stained in paint.

Having Jataro with him caused Masaru to think back to the beginning of everything. After Big Sis Junko saved the group and loved them. He felt a knot in his stomach as he remembered their first Demon killing. He had done most of it, and Jataro helped with pretty much all of the rest. Wasn't the Demon hunting supposed to be fun? Why did this feeling come up on him?

Jataro's job was done, and after a quick drink the two set on before finding a place to sleep. It was the same cold, hard, dirty floor as his last sleeping session, but having another with Masaru made the sleep better. For the time being, he wasn't alone. He was with the member whom he had pranked and who seemed to hate himself, but he was with someone.

 **-DETECT!-**

A huge crash from somewhere aboveground made Masaru wake up immediately. Jataro was still pretty much nailed to the floor, in a deep sleep. Masaru shook him awake. "Jataro! There was a loud noise from up above! We need to get up and see!" He panicked.

Jataro groaned, slipped on his little pack, and stood up. Masaru wasted no time and ran to find the source of the noise. The exhaustion of having no food for probably more than a day made him stop a lot and run a lot slower. After a few twists, he stopped and waited for Jataro to catch up.

Wordlessly, Masaru pointed to a small ray of light just up ahead. "Check…please…" Masaru gasped in between words. He sank to the ground against the wall, completely and utterly tired. Jataro nodded, and went up ahead to the hole.

It was worrying to see Masaru like this. He _was_ the former 'Lil Ultimate P.E., and always boasted about his physical capabilities. Those bad bruises on him couldn't be helping either, though Jataro was against asking about that. Jataro peeked out of the hole, and saw a huge arena flooded both literally and metaphorically, as there were, once again, tons of Monokuma Kids.

Jataro only got a sneak peek as at that moment, a robot exploded in a showy blaze. He caught a little bit of pink, and realized that Kotoko was the next member defeated. Jataro was in deep thought about how to call her over as the Monokuma Kids came closer and closer. However, at the last second, that weird Demon shocked herself and rescued Kotoko in the nick of time.

Shocked at this twist, Jataro stumbled back into the tunnels. Masaru seemed to have regained more consciousness when he got back. Masaru frowned, a hurt look in his eyes. "Where's the other member?" he demanded, "Why didn't you save them?"

Jataro's eyes flashed at the accusation. "I-i-it was Kotoko! That gross Demon had saved her herself!" he insisted. "She was…spared. And it's not like a boy like me could've done anything…"

Hearing about the unexpected savior only made Masaru angrier. "Why did that Demon save Kotoko, but not _us!"_ he snarled, "That's not fair! It's not fair! If that _Demon_ does it again, she'll be the one who _really_ needs _saving_!" Masaru yelled. He then realized what he had said and covered his mouth in dismay.

Tears welled up in Masaru's eyes as he looked at Jataro's shocked face. "I-I'm sorry," he whispered, "It wasn't meant for you-or Kotoko…" He sniffled. _Why couldn't I just control my feelings for once?_

Jataro frowned, a strange, understanding look on his face. "I-it's alright, Masaruu, we just need to clear ourselves of all Demon influence," Jataro suggested. "Like, thinking of washing machines…or the smell of wet paaaint… Anything that would make you happy...and definitely not trash like me…"

Masaru's eyes watered a bit as he nodded. "I'm sorry, again. I just…" he breathed out of his nose, "Found myself acting…like _him_ …"

Jataro's eyes were full of understanding. "The best we can do for now is to sleep I guess…" he yawned and clenched his hands to his stomach. "I'm so hungry now, though. I'll even eat bird skin…" The Priest passed around a small sip of water, and the two lay down to sleep.

Before he drifted off, troubled thoughts filled Masaru's mind. Would they be stuck in the tunnels forever? He remembered hearing from Nagisa it only took 3 weeks for someone to die of starvation during a Demon Hunting session. How long had it been?

Grips of hunger wrapped around Masaru's stomach, so painful he almost cried. He was so afraid, even with Jataro next to him.

 **-MOVE!-**

The next day, Masaru had the two boys walk for probably hours and hours, not giving up on the goal to get out. He found a few tunnel exits, but Monokumas and Monokuma Kids alike seemed to be everywhere, preventing exit or normal conversation in case of them hearing.

They hadn't realized how far they had actually gone until they heard the patterned clanging of metal up above. There was the mechanical whirring noise of what seemed to be a conveyor belt. Remembering the large locations among Towa city, Masaru realized they had to be close to the building that created Monokumas.

Jataro fumbled the vial in his hands, taking a drink. He had reached desperation during the journey to eat some inedible things, including said vial. The journey almost felt like nothing, with the pure despair of starving fully setting in.

Masaru's eyes, dull with exhaustion, suddenly lit up. "Wha-what's goin' on?" Jataro asked cautiously. Masaru turned towards his team mate, his face in a wide smile. It was actually pretty creepy, if Jataro had to be honest.

"I-I _smell_ it… The smell _of food!"_ Masaru's cried, his voice echoing throughout the tunnel. His voice was trembling, but full of what almost seemed like the normal tone of the former leader. Without any warning, he started running to the side direction from where the two were heading before.

Barely mumbling a response the outburst, Jataro tried to run with the other boy. Whatever adrenaline rush hit Masaru, it didn't hit Jataro. Eventually the two came to a stop outside of a very discrete exit tunnel.

"There. It's out there! I can hardly wait!" Drool dripped from Masaru's mouth as he pointed through the grate. Sure enough, there were two small, abandoned grocery bags full of already cooked meals. Based on the sickening amount of dried blood around on the bags, they had been dropped in a Monokuma attack.

In an almost ferocious manner, Masaru kicked open the grate, picked up the bags, and ran back, not like he was being speedy not to be caught, but just from pure rush of finding food. He brought in the food, leaving Jataro to wonder: How did he smell this in the first place? Another one of life's mysteries, it seemed.

Masaru tore open the dirty bags without any thought, revealing a stale bread pack, two packets of raw noodles, and a plastic bag of bruised apples. There was also a single water bottle inside, untouched but lukewarm. It seemed whoever had bought these items before the Monokuma rampage was not going to be returning anytime soon.

The two boys ate, Masaru eating rapidly, while Jataro was a bit slower. Taking a bite out of an apple, Masaru spoke. "I'm so glad this food was around! But, I wonder, would those Monokumas still obey us? We are their leaders after all; 'specially me." He was talking while eating, something that Jataro did not find pleasant.

Jataro held a few raw noodles in his sleeved hands as he fidgeted with his arms. "I suppose it's a _liiittle_ too risky to test that out. What if, because we lost, they start to maul us?" Jataro wondered, crunching the dry pasta. "A betrayal of leadership? Once loyal to us, now destroying our every mark we had made with their paws we created?"

Agitated by Jataro's rambling, Masaru ate what they had split a little faster. Knitting his eyebrows, he did think about the possibly, among other things. Was Nagisa alright? Was Kotoko fine after being saved? And how was the beloved Mage Monaca doing through all of this?

As the last of the food crumbs seemed to disappear, Jataro made the decision to keep his half of uneaten noodles and two leftover apples in his art bag for later. Surprisingly, Masaru had given in to the idea rather easily, which Jataro thought would be harder do to his excitement for food in the first place. Gulping down a sip of water, Jataro passed it to Masaru, who drank his share as well before putting it in the bag as well.

After more time walking- though it was a lot less hard due to eating and having energy be regained -the two decided to sleep for the night, certain they were at the entrance of the Monokuma factory. The rhythmic clanging of newly made Monokumas slowly had the boys drift into sleep.

 **-LINK!-**

 _The state of the land was almost as if it was from a fairytale. Bright green, soft, healthy grass decorated the landscape as children rolled downs hills, chased each other, and played in a park nearby. The five leaders of this amazing land resided near the best, most shadiest, most perfect place in the area._

It was paradise.

 _Masaru sat in the middle of the Warriors, with Monaca to one side and Nagisa to the other. Jataro and Kotoko were on the sides of those two. They gazed at their paradise they created, seeing the children be happy and play without adults in their lives to bring them down. They all seemed to be looking at Masaru, their super cool leader._

 _Nagisa prodded Masaru with a sharp jab to his shoulder. Looking at Nagisa in confusion, Masaru got up as he realized the other boy wanted to show him something. Nagisa spoke, but no sound came except for the ambience off children playing and birds chirping. It was as if he, and the other Warriors, were on mute._

 _They stopped at a door, belonging to what could be a small shed. Stickers of a black-and-white bear, along with small chibi ones of a strawberry-blond-haired girl, decorated the outer walls, along with minor doodles such as stars or hearts. Nagisa was talking to him with an unsettling look on his face._

 _Confused, Masaru reached out an arm to open the shed door, thinking that's what Nagisa wanted. Nagisa pulled him away, and seemed to say 'not yet.' The boy then pulled Masaru into an embrace. Masaru squirmed, trying to get away as he felt his face heat up in embarrassment._ H-he's hugging me? _Masaru thought, blushing harder still._

 _At last, Nagisa let go._

 _He still had that uncanny look on his face._

 _Face still red, Masaru tried to concentrate as Nagisa spoke. It seemed quicker now, and he was a lot more tense. He quickly glanced over his shoulder before locking eyes with Masaru again. He looked afraid, yet determined at the same time. The Hero looked over the taller boy's body to see what he had seen._

 _Monaca was there, in her wheelchair, staring. Unblinking. Watching._

 _Nagisa opened the shed's door and shoved Masaru inside of it, locking it behind him. Inside the shed, it was completely black, aside from the small light came from the bottom of the door. A harsh noise echoed around the room. It was barely recognizable as mechanical laughter._

"Puhuhu huhu….upupupu!"

 _Gleaming claws sliced through Masaru's body as soon as the laughter ended. His vision blurred as he looking at the dripping bloods shining on the bears claws, hearing_ and feeling _one after the other move in the impale him._

 _All was okay in paradise. Monaca sat in the middle, Nagisa at her side, and Kotoko and Jataro below her. She smiled. It really was paradise._

 **-KNOCKBACK!-**

Masaru awoke with a start, making Jataro flinch and sit up quickly. Apologizing quickly, Masaru sat aside and tried to recollect his dream. _There was kid's paradise, a shed…_ Nagisa hugging me _…Monaca, and… and… my_ _ **death.**_ The contents of the dream were slowly muddling away, being forgotten already. But Masaru truly remembered his horrible death.

It made him sick just thinking about. And why was Monaca there? Of course she was the Mage and loved, but she simply…sat there. Masaru tried to shake the ominous dream from his thoughts as Jataro fully woke up with a groan. Metallic clanks and paw steps of Monokumas echoed from above.

Traversing through the tunnels of the factory, the Warriors of Hope were greeted with a strangely wide room, being square in shape with no tunnel interruptions besides an exit on the side. There were also inverted rectangles that went up out of the ceiling with ledges inside and a small, see-through panel inside each one above the last ledge.

After looking around, Masaru turned to Jataro. "Hey, I have an idea!" he declared. "Lift me up there, and I'll climb up onto the ridges with my 'Lil Ultimate strength!" The Leader proudly put his hands and his hips, pleased with his plan.

Jataro, however, was more wary. "M-Masaru, there's no way I can lift you up there. I'm too small and you're a lot heavier than me!"

Masaru snorted. "At least it's all muscle!" he huffed. "I _promise_ it'll only take a sec if you _coperate!"_ The red-haired boy looked really hopeful. Shaking his head, Jataro took off his art bag for safety, and then leaned down a little, looking awkward. He had a frown on his face, nervous about the idea.

Masaru jumped on Jataro's back, causing him to stumble wildly forwards and fall. " _Ooooowww_ …" Rubbing his bruised chin, Jataro shakily got up again. Masaru, due to his soft landing, had no problem getting ready for a second try.

"This time, lean against the wall and walk over the rectangle here!" Masaru pointed, and Jataro got into position. Masaru crawled onto Jataro's shoulders quite a bit slower. Trembling with effort in every step, Jataro slowly inched towards the desired rectangle.

Once below it, Masaru unsteadily stood on his companion's shoulders, making sure to quickly jump onto the ledge above. Jataro panted with the effort and looked up at him. "If you fall, I might not be able to catch you," he mumbled, biting his sleeve, "you fight fall and snap your neck because I couldn't catch you… I'm so worthless…"

Masaru chewed on his lip as he tried to steady himself the uncomfortable position that balanced him. "Don't think about that! You just helped me up here, that's not useless!" Masaru called. Jataro did not respond, other than shifting his eyes and looking the other way. _Is he…embarrassed?_

Masaru peeked into the panel of glass that allowed him to see the area. Barely able to take in the surroundings, the familiar blue glow of the Demon's gun scattered across the area. There were words being spoken desperately, and blasts echoed throughout the area. She was fighting! But…who?

Muffled noise came from behind the glass, and quick sightings of the Demon running around the area entered Masaru's vision. Suddenly, a force landed on top of the rectangle Masaru was inside of. Scrambling to readjust his foot so he couldn't fall, Masaru grunted and looked back out.

On top of the rectangle in front of him, was Nagisa's robot. Nagisa was being fought! The robot reloaded its gun and attempted to shoot the pair of Demons. _Go Nagisa, go!_ Masaru thought. Turning around, he looked down at Jataro. "Nagisa is being fought up here!"

Jataro looked alarmed. "Oh no! How will we rescue him when he loses?" he shouted. Distraught, he pulled on a part of his hair, possibly reminiscent of something he would do with his mask.

" _If_ he loses, not _when!_ " Masaru scolded. "Those Demons don't stand a chance against Nagisa! He's probably smarter than the two of them _conbined!_ " However, Masaru glanced out the panel with a nervous look on his face. Those Demons were strong, even for Nagisa…

"Okay! We need to find a way out to save Nagisa!" Masaru decided, jumping down from his post. The two searching the tunnel that lead out from the wall, coming in contact with an upper door. Pushing it open and sticking their heads through, Masaru and Jataro were face to face with the battle arena.

However, as they watched Nagisa fight, they realized Nagisa was losing control- both of his robot, based on the increasingly jerky movements, and of his psyche, spouting things about being expected of high things. To see him like this shook Masaru to the core.

Nagisa was the calm, focused member of the group, offering a smart solution and helping the five improve. The only other time Masaru had seen him act like this was what seemed like quite a while back. The few days before they all decided to die together.

Then, it was over. The last few blasts to the robot's face were the ones it needed to be destroyed. The head fell off in screeches, the fingers curling and snapping against the dead weight. Masaru watched as Nagisa fumbled with his robot's control stick. Gasping in horror, Masaru realized the robot's huge shoulder pad was falling over, right on Nagisa.

Closing his eyes in a flinch, he did not witness the sight of Nagisa being crushed, but heard the explosion that followed. Not even realizing it, tears fell from Masaru's eyes to the ground quickly. Jataro was frozen in position, staring at the scene where Nagisa had once fought. Placing a hand on Masaru's back, Jataro attempted to comfort his friend.

Those two Demons, along with another, lingered around, talking with the creepy-looking one with long hair. It had nothing important to say, other than make a horrible pun about Nagisa's death and convince them not to go looking for him. The Demon's obnoxious words made Masaru's blood boil. All it cared about was that stupid big Monokuma!

Regardless of whether Nagisa was truly…gone or not, Masaru crawled out of the hole, Jataro following. He had to know if Nagisa was alive. It seemed like a deafening silence was around the area, slightly broken by the sounds of Masaru crying and Jataro sniffling. However, Masaru was determined to find the Sage.

The huge, charred shoulder pad was right where it fell, but Nagisa's body was nowhere to be seen. "W-was he flattened so badly he just _poofed right_ out of existence?" Jataro moaned. Jataro's worst-case-scenario talk normally didn't bother Masaru too much, but this appeared to make him cry harder.

The two tried lifting the skull, and they succeeded, at least enough. Masaru gasped so hard he scared Jataro and almost caused him to drop his held part. In a surge of strength, Masaru pushed the skull completely over the side, revealing Nagisa's body.

He had various wounds, and was bleeding quite a bit. Fringes of his clothing and hair were splayed and burnt from the explosion. It seemed he had landed right inside of a safe hole in the skull, causing him not to be flattened. Masaru and Jataro had tears well up in their eyes again, but from relief instead of sadness. Nagisa was breathing.

"W-we've got to pull him back down to the tunnels!" Masaru said, already grabbing a hold of Nagisa's upper half. "You get the bottom, and _please_ be careful. We can't hurt him any more than this!"

The two struggled to get the blue haired boy down safe into the tunnels, but they did it. After setting Nagisa down, Masaru removed his orange scarf that was around his neck and wrapped it around a bad cut on his head. "Back in P.E., we were taught that this is a good way to stop bleeding easily." Masaru explained, tightening the scarf.

He took off the tank top that was his second layer on top of his tee shirt, tying it around Nagisa's right leg, which had a very bad cut on it. Jataro used his bag to prop up Nagisa's head so he could be comfortable. With a mournful look, Masaru curled up on the ground nearby Nagisa, preparing for sleep. Jataro stayed up a bit longer, possibly seeing if the Sage would wake up before then, but eventually drifted.

 **-PARALYZE!-**

 _H…huh? Where…am I?_

Nagisa awoke, quickly shooting his upper body straight up. He was…in a metal area? Nagisa looked down at himself. His legs were wrapped up in an article of clothing, stained red by blood, and Nagisa could feel another piece of clothing wrapped around his head.

Groaning, he placed a hand to his forehead. _Am I…dead?_ It almost embarrassed him to have a thought like that, but it was plausible. He shifted in position, uncomfortable due to the hard ground. Suddenly he froze, acutely aware of something very lightly brushing against his side. Craning his neck, Nagisa flinched in shock, seeing Jataro nearby, his sleeve just barely touching him.

Nagisa's face paled. _"J-Jataro?!"_ he whispered, but not very quietly. The Priest no longer had his mask, and was sleeping in possibly the strangest position Nagisa had ever seen. But, that was beside the point; Jataro was _alive?_ After Monaca had convinced him that Jataro was dead, he would have never thought there was a chance. But still, it was _Monaca…_

Nagisa attempted to get up, but his injured right leg buckled underneath the strain. He looked around the room once again, but something Nagisa hadn't realized was also in the room. " _Masaru_ too?!" Nagisa blinked rapidly, as if he was just imagining his supposedly dead comrades being next to him. _Surely I'm dead…is this Hell?_ Nagisa's blood ran cold at the thought, even if he admitted it wasn't the most rational one.

A small grunt made Nagisa turn his head back to Jataro. The short boy yawned and stretched, then looked over at Nagisa with unfocused eyes. It was a tad bit unnerving to see Jataro without his mask, in Nagisa's opinion. Jataro glanced at Nagisa, and then turned back over to sleep more.

Jataro then sat up with a bang. Nagisa was awake? "Na-Nagisa!" Jataro cried out, pulling the taller boy into a hug. "You're not dead! Oh, me and Masaru rescued you from being crushed, but you were knocked out and we carried you here!" Jataro's gray-lilac eyes sparkled in happiness.

Nagisa twirled his fingers together, blushing from the attention. "Well, I'm grateful for that, Jataro," Nagisa spoke. Seeing as he couldn't walk, he sat neatly, placing his hands in his lap. "After you two were captured, we thought there was no way you could have survived."

Jataro smiled, and it pleased Nagisa to see the boy so happy. He was talkative sure, but he wasn't all that bad. "Oh, I almost forgot!" Jataro moved across to Masaru and shook him awake. The Leader awoke with a groan.

"Unf…more sleep…" Masaru mumbled, turning back around.

"There's no time for that! Nagisa is awake!" Jataro pushed Masaru again, causing him to fully wake up. He stared at Nagisa, but he was trying so hard to act casual and not burst into the widest smile his face looked strained. Jataro waved his arms around. "Masaru was so sad when we thought you were dead. I mean, not saying I wasn't, but then he lead us to try to find you!" Jataro blurted out quickly.

Masaru cleared his throat. "Um…nice to see you again, Nagisa," he said awkwardly, his voice trembling. "I'm really glad that you're awake! I would have been really sad if you died- we, I mean." He chuckled. Nagisa realized that Masaru's patterned tank top was the clothing that was wrapped around his leg. Had he also wrapped his scarf around his head as well? _I suppose I should thank him after all…_

"Thank you, Masaru." Nagisa nodded, and adjusted his little bowtie. He thought for a moment. "Actually, thank you for not only saving me, but Jataro as well. I presume that you saved him from the Monokuma Kids?"

Jataro smiled. "I couldn't believe he would save a disgusting thing like me, but he did!" he said. Despite the trio being bruised, dirty, and battered, it seemed like the best thing in the world for them to be reunited.

Nagisa attempted to get up once again, and held his hand against the wall for stability. He was a little wobbly, but could just barely stand. The cat-haired boy paid attention thoroughly as Masaru explained what led to the events to get here. He took a bite out of an apple Jataro had in his bag for later, and then proceeded to explain what had happened in their absence, including leading the two Demons to the exit and Kotoko after being saved.

He was very reluctant to tell them what happened with Monaca, as well as himself afterwards, but did so anyways. They had to know and realize how bad Monaca was, even though they heard him screaming about her during his fight with the Demons. They were both horrified by the actions of the seemingly perfect girl.

Masaru stood up and dusted off his clothing. "I think we should try to find a way back to our base," he said. "If Monaca really is being _despective,_ then we should head there right away and try to save Kotoko!" He pumped a fist in the air enthusiastically.

Nagisa's face twitched, a small smile coming on his face. "It's deceptive," he corrected. The three then set off into the tunnels, supporting Nagisa on his side to make up for his injured leg. As they neared closer and closer to what seemed like commotion and chaos, they waited for the perfect time to come in.

The Big Bang Monokuma had just arrived.

 **I am so proud of this omg**

 **I know it seems like a cliff hanger but you can kind connect the dots. i feel like the paragraphs seem to short on the computer version but its easier to read than a freaking block of text**

 **Clearing up something: near the beginning with masaru being angry about Kotoko being saved and "acting like him" is a reference to parents being like "if you keep crying I'll give you something to cry about"**

 **Yeah**

 **And so concludes the first of** _ **The Collections of Hope!**_


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